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#1 of 3 campgrounds in Lower Zambezi National Park
Location
5.0
Rooms
4.8
Value
4.8
Cleanliness
4.9
Service
5.0
Sleep Quality
4.8
Where there are more resident elephants than guests. Old Mondoro is owned and operated by the Chiawa Camp family, it’s an authentic bush camp that fully immerses its guests in the wildlife and location without compromising comfort and convenience. Combines perfectly with Chiawa Camp.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
We stayed for 4 nights in June 2024 for our honeymoon and while we were there it was also my wife’s birthday.
Firstly, the camp and the staff led by Madelein and Mark were fantastic. Nothing was too much trouble at any time, every whim cared for and all of the food was absolutely delicious, I don’t normally have the most varied of diets, but everything that was served to us was spot on even for a “picky eater”
The rooms were also perfect, we had room number 2, which offered fantastic views of the river and over lunch time we had numerous elephants, crocs, hippos and warthogs playing, drinking and bathing in mud right outside our room for hours every day, which we will never forget.
Both of the guides we had from Old Mondoro were brilliant, great passion and lots of knowledge. Samora in particular, his passion, energy and humour made the drives great fun. He got the balance just right. He stopped just long enough to let you take a few photos, give you a bit of information and off we went back to our drive, usually looking for leopards!
Samora took us looking for leopards for an entire afternoon one day with no luck. He combed every long piece of grass and tree in the park twice over, but due to increased lion activity at that time they were subdued. We were half way back to camp that evening when another vehicle had spotted a leopard walking across the road, without hesitation Samora turned the vehicle round immediately and went 15 minutes back the way that we came so that we could see the leopards.
Wildlife sightings were great. Leopards lions and dogs every day. Another guest while we were there went out looking for dogs seven days in a row and saw them on a successful hunt every day. On more than one occasion Old Mondoro vehicles were the only ones there to see this.
There were a number of surprises organised for my wife’s birthday, a private lunch in the bush, a private candlelit dinner on our terrace, a birthday cake and a bath ran for her just before bed. I’d mentioned how much she loved a bath when we were shown to our room on the first night and I’m sure that the bath being run was down to Madelein picking up on this comment.
We stayed at another Chiawa camp on our trip and Old Mondoro was our clear favourite.
Thank you so much for a honeymoon which we will remember forever, we cannot recommend Old Mondoro enough.
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Date of stay: June 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Aug 28, 2024
With reviews like this it’s no surprise that Old Mondoro is consistently named, by those in the know, as a/the favourite safari camp in all of Africa. Thank you. 🐘
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
My apologies to Old Mondoro Camp and staff and Madelein and Mark and Samora for such a delinquent review. But, Old Mondoro Camp is our favorite camp we’ve ever had the privilege to stay at on safari. We were there at the end of October 2023 and stayed five nights. We opted for the extra option of a private vehicle to ourselves so that we had the choice of stopping and going anywhere for as long as WE wanted. Madelein and Mark were our hosts, who were the also the best we have ever had the pleasure of meeting. And the rest of the camp staff were perfect and so helpful and kind to us. Old Mondoro’s chef was really good. Madelein’s artistic detail and touches were all over the camp. As we approached the edge of the Zambezi river on which the camp was situated, hundreds of Cape Buffalo were headed toward the lagoon in front of where the rooms were. We were driven to the main area of the camp to be met and greeted by Madelein and Mark and a wonderful cold ice tea. It was near 100 degrees when we arrived. October is very hot, but the grasses are shorter than making game viewing much easier. As we were taken to our lodging by land-cruiser due to the fact elephants were walking through camp. Our room was amazing, situated at the edge of the lagoon inlet from the Zambezi. Elephants came up to the room and looked at us and then walked past. It was just magical. We could just take a seated game drive form our room. Game were visiting camp all of the time, from plains game to Hippos, Cape Buffalo, and of course the Elephants. Each room had a walkie talky to hail a land-cruiser to get you to the dining area to stay safe from the game. Our Driver/Guide was Samora, who was so knowledgeable about the land and flora and fauna. Guides must pass a stringent testing process in order to become qualified as a guide and driver. His instincts for finding the game and anticipation of their movements was uncanny. He would kid us all the time saying 95% of seeing such and such, and sure enough the sightings would materialize… We started nicknaming him Mr. 95, LOL. Game drives start after breakfast at 5:30AM. Since we were in our own vehicle we had the luxury of starting and ending whenever. Since it was so hot, each room had kikois for us to soak in water and wring out to place around our necks on the game drive to remain cool. We each were given our own metal water bottles with our names, filled with ice cold water to keep hydrated. On our game drives we viewed abundant Elephant, Waterbuck, Puku antelope, Hippo, Cape Buffalo, Lion, Leopard and Wild Dog. We saw Leopard every day and had multiple good sightings of Wild Dog. This was the one of the main reasons to come to Zambia, for the opportunity to view Leopard and Wild Dog and last but not least to stay at Old Mondoro Camp…. Mondoro means lion.
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Date of stay: October 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Oct 22, 2024
Thank you for this incredible review. We are so proud of our team and Old Mondoro, and reviews like this make us even prouder 🙏
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Old Mondoro must mean special place because it certainly is. That’s why guests keep returning to this very private camp with just 5 cabins fronting the Zambezi. Each of the cabins is very private with a deck facing either the Zambezi or an inlet off the Zambezi. You can sit on your deck and see all the game you’ll ever want to see, but even so you won’t want to miss the game drives. We had four encounters with a pack of 21 wild dogs while we were there, and each encounter was truly special. We watched them for several hours over three game drives, one time for over two hours. We watched them sleep, and play, and eat. The precision of their hunting and killing of an impala was fascinating. Thanks to our guide James for this incredible experience. Our night drives with our spotter Samora were wonderful. And thanks to Monde our server who greeted us for every meal and return from our game drives with a huge smile and a cold drink and to everyone else for an absolutely wonderful experience. There don’t seem to be many places left where you truly feel you’ve left all of the trappings of the outside world behind, where you can watch totally undisturbed animals, watch elephants playing in the inlet just feet from your deck, fall asleep to a chorus of frogs, and wake to a symphony of hippos. The hospitality is truly genuine without being over the top or obsequious, and the food is the best we’ve had in all of Africa. Baulene, the head chef, and sous chef Chris are masters of healthy and delicious food. We had a wonderful time with hosts Mark and Madeleine, sharing stories about experiences in the bush and around the world. Like I said, this is a very special place. Get there as soon as you can.
For those with Covid concerns, Old Mondoro will put you at ease. It is very spread out with more than enough room for social distancing. Our temperature was taken when we arrived. Hand sanitizer was plentiful and the staff all wore masks. We were greeted with hand sanitizer after every game drive. All of the staff were also vaccinated. Africa is the place to be if you’re worrying exposure to Covid. They have taken things really seriously and are waiting with open arms, socially distanced of course.
Thank you to all our Old Mondoro friends. We’ll be back.
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Date of stay: May 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Jun 8, 2021
The wild dogs are just incredible at the moment with fabulous sightings at Old Mondoro, Chiawa Camp and Puku Ridge. Thank you for your review and for visiting Old Mondoro again. Blessed are we to share this planet and National Park with this incredible wildlife. Safe travels and we hope to welcome you back soon.
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Old Mondoro is a superb camp. The location, food, service, guiding, and comfort of the cabins were all first-rate.
What I enjoyed was that there were always elephants in the camp. One had to be escorted to the dining area and game drives. I will return.
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Date of stay: August 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Sep 3, 2024
Safety first! Thank you for sharing this review, we love the elephants in camp too 🐘🐘🐘
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Amazing rustic camp set along the banks of the Zambezi River. Rooms are basic meeting the needs of travelers seeking an authentic safari experience! We had Ellie’s passing by our room practically every afternoon.
Camp staff from management (Nambula, Madeliene and Mark) to all other staff make the stay memorable.
The camp features communal dining with 5 star level food including very delicious vegetarian fare. The amarula ice cream plus the veggie Canelloni were standouts! Thank you Old Mondoro staff for the dining experiences!
We had Lackson as our guide. He was subpar. However Mark and Madeliene made very quick amends pairing us with Samora who was exceptional! The after dark leopard sighting was a highlight! Edson is an amazing spotter. Boaz is an equally exceptional guide!
We did the canoe and boat ride which are a must do!
This is a camp they should be on everyone’s bucket list to experience the raw authenticity of the Lower Zambezi National Park.
Thank you Old Mondoro for an absolutely amazing experience!!!
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Date of stay: June 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Room 2 offers the best views of the River and lagoon. Rooms 3 - 5 generally have closer elephant...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Aug 28, 2024
Thank you for your review. We have a wonderful team who we are constantly upskilling and working with to improve 🐘
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Probably our favourite Safari camp in Zambia. We loved the game rich and breathtaking location. The room was incredible and just the right mix of luxury and rustic bush elegance. However, we very disappointed with the standard of guiding as we had booked and paid to have a private guide and vehicle as I wanted to do some photography and birding. This was specified in our booking. The guide we were allocated appeared to be the manager’s partner instead of being part of the actual guiding team. He made no secret of the fact that he despised private guide and vehicle bookings which made us feel really uncomfortable given that we had just paid the extra money for this service! This came as a big disappointment for us as we heard such good things about the standard of guiding at Old Mondoro. There was very little communication with us as he rushed his way through the bush. We have done many African safaris and this would rank as one of the worst guiding experiences. Such a pity for an otherwise flawless safari camp!
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Date of stay: May 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Aug 28, 2024
Thank you. This has been taken up with the pro guide in question who usually has rave reviews. This will help us improve, apologies.
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A stay at Old Mondoro is probably the best gift you can give to an elephant lover. There are elephants roaming the grounds of the camp everyday. While not habituated, they are definitely more used to human presence.
The camp is designed such that it has a open concept. During daytime, the blinds are lifted so you can look out of your room easily to spot game. There is also an outer deck where you can nap on the day bed as the elephants walk by. During nighttime, all blinds are pulled down again and you feel as if you are sleeping in a normal room. So i would call it a semi-bush camp.
The bathroom area has a tub which I soaked in while watching three elephants sparring in the river 50 feet away from me. They seem to be a mischievous bunch because the same sparring happen again the next afternoon, although I was not 100% sure if they were the same elephants. And let's say the last time I stepped into a tub was decades ago....
Another memorable moment was witnessing Turndown standing on its hind legs, reaching for a winterthorn branch. I always thought this is something that can only be observed at Mana Pools NP, but apparently a few elephants around Old Mondoro have also added this skill to their repertoire.
I can understand why people say Old Mondoro is magical.
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Date of stay: October 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cons: After the careful, thoughtful design of Big Lagoon camp, part of the Chikoko trails/Tafika in South Luangwa, the accommodation comfort at Old Mondoro is lacking. For instance, it is not easy to hang one’s towels very close to the sink/basin, there is a shortage of convenient hooks, the outside shower has a wall which for shorter people blocks the view, the toilet is separated by a curtain, and the outside area is dominated by a bath which few people use as it is open to the sky and leaves are constantly falling in it. Our accommodation faced West and the afternoon heat was very challenging. These are a few “cons” but the “pros” are incredible and FAR outweigh any cons. Pros: The area is stunningly beautiful and game viewing was absolutely remarkable! Our guide, Mweni, was exceptional and, even though we have been to many game parks, we had some of the best animal sightings such as wild dog chases and even a kill, something that we have never experienced. Furthermore, from our very private patio we could closely watch diverse animals, such as elephants having a mudbath, and interesting behaviour close up such as an older sister pushing a baby elephant away so she could have her turn, and the baby elephant showing his unhappiness and stubbornly trying to return. All in all, we are already looking forward to our return.
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Date of stay: September 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Oct 1, 2024
Thanks for visiting and for your review. Yes, the wildlife viewing from Old Mondoro’s rooms is absolutely fantastic, second to none really, because the rooms face west and over the lagoon where all that action is. Our guests are (usually) out on safari in the late afternoons, when the sun drops below the sunshade. Yes, although we sweep the bathrooms a few times every day the outdoor bathrooms still get leaves because they are outdoors and deliberately open to the sky but Old Mondoro is a bush camp and the vast majority of its guests prefer this to indoor bathrooms. We have sent in some extra hooks for hand towels and these will be installed on Friday. For those wanting indoor bathrooms and more comfort we recommend our Chiawa Camp. Thanks again.
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If you want to experience the real Lower Zambezi Bush, this is the place to go. The camp is part of the surrounding habitat with continual visits from the local wildlife. All the staff are so friendly, doing all they can to make sure you enjoy your experience. How the Chef produced such quality food in the middle of the Bush amazed me. I was lucky to have a really experienced guide, Luckson, as my guide. He ensured I had the most amazing experiences. I felt like I was living in a National Geographic programme, with Luckson continually sharing his vast wildlife knowledge with me. I just have to figure out how and when I can return.
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Date of stay: July 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Grant Cumings, Owner at Old Mondoro
Responded Aug 28, 2024
Thank you for sharing your experience and for acknowledging our pro guides. We look forward to your return. 🐘
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We were lucky to visit OM for a few days! The camp is beautifully located in an unspoilt environment where our only other guests were elephants, impalas and buffaloes oh and the staff at OM. We were warmly welcomed by Mark and Madeleine who are awesome hosts and managed all aspects effortlessly during our stay. Sightings were memorable, among the general game we particularly enjoyed seeing elephants, wild dogs, hyenas, porcupines, honey badgers, lions, leopards and especially our game drive where we watched a leopard mum interact with her two adorable cubs.... priceless. The elephants in camp provided us with up close and personal experiences on a daily basis. We arrived as guests and left as friends. If you're looking for something special, visit OM, you won't be disappointed!
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Date of stay: July 2021
Location
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there. Soap, shampoo, conditioner and mosi spray are all supplied at Old Mondoro. I hope this helps and we look forward to welcoming you at Old Mondoro.
Thank you for your interest - Old Mondoro is not an hotel but an unfenced bushcamp in a wild and remote National Park. Please contact our reservations office in Lusaka for a bespoke quotation based on your interests and requirements - details available on the chiawa website.
Thank you.
There are more places to choose from in the Lower Zambezi National Park area.
LOCATION
ZambiaLusaka ProvinceLower Zambezi National Park
NUMBER OF ROOMS
5
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